The next morning Blue Bonnet made her first acquaintance among her new neighbors. She had gone out to see for herself what lay beyond that tall screen of trees. Nothing at all mysterious, she found; merely another broad green lawn centering itself about an old creeper-covered brick house. Following the path beside the trees, she came to a low picket-fence, over which ran a stile. Blue Bonnet sat down on the upper step to survey at leisure this next-door place; and then she saw that from midway across the lawn some one was surveying her,—a boy of about her own age.
“Good morning,” he said.
“Good morning,” Blue Bonnet answered. “Do you live here?”
“Yes.”
“It’s a very pretty place.”
The other turned to look back at the old house. “I suppose it is,” he admitted, “though I’ve never thought much about it.” He came nearer, whistling to a pair of fox-terrier puppies, who were worrying at something at the further end of the lawn. “Do you like dogs?” he asked.
“I adore them,” Blue Bonnet answered.
“Bob and Ben are pretty decent little chaps,” the boy said, and he brought the dogs up to be introduced.
“They’re dears,” Blue Bonnet declared warmly, patting the two upturned heads.
The puppies shook hands politely, wagging their stumps of tails eagerly.